


Thirteen O'Clock

by dragonydreams



Category: Heroes - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-01
Updated: 2013-01-01
Packaged: 2017-11-23 10:56:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/621344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonydreams/pseuds/dragonydreams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Title: Thirteen O'Clock  
Author: Elisabeth  
Rating: PG-13  
Fandom: Heroes  
Pairing: Peter/Claire, some Peter/Simone  
Summary: Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.  
Spoilers: through Distractions.  
Disclaimer: I claim no ownership over these characters. I am merely borrowing them from Tim Kring et al.  
Feedback: Yes please! It makes me happy and keeps me writing.  
Thanks to [](http://kallie-kat.livejournal.com/profile)[**kallie_kat**](http://kallie-kat.livejournal.com/) for the beta!

A/N: Just pretend that Peter wasn't in a coma for several weeks; he just passed out for a few hours, then went back to New York with Nathan. Claire is 17 in this story.

  
Chapter One

_Burnt Toast Diner. Fri Oct 15, 6pm. – P_

 

Claire let out a breath she felt like she'd been holding for a week. Peter was coming for her.

Life had been crazy since Homecoming for Claire Bennet. She'd already known she was a freak due to her ability to heal from anything, even death. But now she was a freak whose former best friend had been killed by a psycho looking for her and her new best friend no longer remembered them being friends.

It was enough to make a cheerleader give up her pompoms.

Claire had begged the Haitian that worked for her father to give her Peter's number. He refused the first dozen times that she asked. On the thirteenth try he relented and handed it over. Thirteen was her new favorite number.

Of course, once she had his number, it took her several more days to work up the nerve to call him. She stayed late after school so that she could call him from outside the gym, a place she felt close to him. It was October 13th when Claire nervously dialed Peter's number and hit send.

"Hello?" came the wary greeting.

"Peter? Peter Petrelli?" she anxiously asked.

"Yes, this is Peter. Who may I ask is calling?"

"It's Claire Bennet; the cheerleader from Odessa," Claire informed him.

"Claire?" Peter's voice immediately grew warm, if a little worried. "How did you get my number? Is everything okay?"

Claire shook her head, despite the fact that she knew he couldn't see her. Tears of relief upon hearing his voice filled her eyes. "This guy that works for my dad had your number. I don't know how he got it, but he knows who you are. He's special too, like us, but different. I hope you don't mind me calling."

"Of course not," Peter assured her. "What's wrong?"

"Everything!" Claire wailed. "School's crazy now that Jackie's dead and that guy who tried to kill me is missing, probably still out there. My best friend doesn't remember anything about me healing or even that we were friends. At home I have to pretend that I don't remember anything about healing or how Jackie really died or anything."

"Claire, slow down," Peter said, wishing he were there to talk her down in person. "Now, what do you mean that you're not supposed to remember?"

"The Haitian, the guy who works for my dad, that's what he does. He makes people forget. He made my brother forget about me healing. He made Zach forget too. It was like one minute everything was normal, and the next thing he's saying we haven't talked in years. My dad told the Haitian to make me forget too, but he didn't. He said it was important that I remember."

"He's right. I don't know why you're important yet, but you are. I went to Odessa to save you, remember. There has to be a reason for it all."

"I don't know about all of that. I'm just a girl. What can I do?"

"I haven't quite figured that out yet," Peter admitted. "What is it that you wanted me to do about all of this?"

"I, um, I don't know," Claire said. "I just knew that I had to talk to you. You saved me from Sylar. I just knew that if I could talk to you everything would be better."

"I'm flattered. Has it helped?"

"A little," Claire said, a smile in her voice. "I just don't know how much longer I can do this, Peter. How can I keep looking at my dad every day as if I didn't know about freaks like us? I don't think that I can stay here."

"Are you talking about running away?" Peter asked. "I don't think I can support that. I know it must be hard for you—"

"You have no idea how hard it is," Claire interrupted. "My own father, well, adopted father, tried to have my memories erased. How am I supposed to live with the knowledge that he tried to take away part of who I am? He's a monster and it's getting harder and harder not to let it show how much I hate him."

"It's never fun learning about who your father really is, believe me, I know," Peter said, thinking of his own rocky relationship with his dad.

"Don't treat me like some kid," Claire hissed.

"I'm not," Peter hastened to say. "I just know what it's like to have issues with your father."

"Then help me," Claire pleaded. "I can't stay here much longer, Peter."

"Don't do anything yet," Peter said. "Give me some time to try to figure something out."

"Promise?" Claire asked, sounding happier already.

"I promise," Peter said. "I'll call you back at this number when I can."

"Thanks, Peter. Good bye."

"Bye, Claire," Peter said, disconnecting.

The next day she received the text from Peter with their meeting time.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Two

Peter sat staring at the quiet cell phone in his hand for several minutes after hanging up with Claire. 

"What was that all about?" Simone asked, stepping out of his kitchen with a bottle of water.

"Claire…the girl I saved in Texas…she's having some trouble at home," Peter slowly said, trying to process the information himself before he could share it.

"And she called you?"

"Yeah," Peter said. He shook himself out of his daze and set the phone down, turning his attention to Simone. 

"You must have made quite the impression," she said, sitting beside him on the couch and running a possessive hand across his shoulders. "Should I be jealous?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Peter retorted, standing up. "She's just a kid."

Simone laughed. "I know. Just making sure. So what did the kid want?"

Peter huffed a laugh. "To run away from home."

"And come here?" Simone asked.

Peter shrugged. "Maybe. She didn't ask outright if she could come to New York, but she said she didn't know how much longer she could remain at home."

"You're not actually thinking of helping a minor to run away, across state lines, are you? You know that's illegal, Peter. If Nathan knew you were even thinking—"

"Don't tell Nathan," Peter said, cutting her off. Simone looked shocked at the harsh tone Peter used. He softened his expression and his voice. "It's just…you know how he gets when it comes to people with abilities. He's an even bigger skeptic than you are."

"What do abilities have to do with anything?"

"Claire can heal. She's the reason I'm not dead right now. She said that there's a man who can take away people's memories working for her dad, and he was supposed to remove her memories of the whole ordeal with Sylar, at her father's orders. But he didn't."

Simone's eyes were wide as she said, "I can see how that would make it difficult living with her father. But he is still her father and she is still a minor. You know you can't interfere."

"I know, I know," Peter said, plopping back down on the couch. 

"You know how teenagers are," Simone continued. "Everything is life and death at that age, especially for a girl."

"With Sylar out there, Claire's life really is in danger. I don't understand how her father could put her at risk by denying her the knowledge that a psychotic serial killer is after her."

"Maybe he wanted to take away the pain that knowledge brought," Simone suggested.

"Whose side are you on?" Peter asked.

"I'm not on anyone's side," Simone said.

Peter stood abruptly, striding over to pick up his jacket and keys. "I need to see Isaac. Maybe he can lend his particular brand of insight to this situation."

Simone's features darkened. "You shouldn't be encouraging him."

"He's clean now. You know that. He's going to paint the future regardless of whether or not I ask him about this situation. He's a valuable resource and I'm not afraid to ask him for help."

"Fine, if you're going, I'm not coming with you," Simone said, crossing her arms.

"That's probably a good idea. Things are tense enough between us when you're not there," Peter agreed. He ignored Simone's hurt look as he turned to leave.

On the subway ride over to Isaac's, Peter went over his conversation with Simone in his head. She had a valid point; he knew that. It would be wrong for him to encourage Claire to run away from home, and even worse if he helped her. However, he couldn't help feeling like he owed it to her to support her decision. 

There was a bond between them now. It wasn't just because he'd saved her life, although he was sure that was a large part of it. He'd felt it the moment they literally bumped into each other in the hallway at the high school. There was just something about Claire that shouted that she was supposed to be in his life. 

He'd thought that maybe he'd imagined it. He told himself that he was allowing his imagination to run wild and it was just his ego being flattered by Claire saying he was her hero. Except that when he'd heard her voice today, he had felt calmer than he had the entire time he'd been back in New York.

Peter knocked on the door to Isaac's studio and anxiously waited for the door to open. He hoped the artist was home, suddenly realizing that he should have called first.

"Peter, I've been expecting you," Isaac said, opening the door.

"You were?" he asked, entering the studio.

"Yeah, Simone called to say you were on your way over," Isaac said, crossing to the canvasses set up in the middle of the room.

"Oh, yeah, I was just thinking that I should have called first," Peter said. 

"That would have been the polite thing to do," Isaac pointed out.

"Sorry. So, um, did she tell you why I was coming?"

Isaac rolled his eyes, hating being around the man who had stolen his girlfriend. "She told me to tell you not to go to Texas, regardless of what I had painted."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Peter grumbled.

"Because Simone is selfish and she doesn't want your attention anywhere except on her," Isaac answered the rhetorical question.

"I hate to ask, man, but have you painted anything else about Claire? Will she be in danger if she stays at home?"

Isaac shrugged, picking up a rag and starting to clean his brushes. "Look for yourself."

Peter turned to look at the freshly painted canvases surrounding him. He'd been so caught up on feeling guilty that he hadn't looked at the paintings yet. 

There was one with an open hand, fire sitting on her palm. The manicured nails and bracelets revealed it to be a woman's hand. Peter was intrigued by the idea of someone who could wield fire. He had no idea what she had to do with Claire's situation though.

In another painting, a tall black man with a shaved head held a frightened Claire against his chest, a hand over her mouth. This must be the Haitian that Claire told him about. So this painting had already happened.

One was more of a landscape painting. A road sign welcomed a car to Kermit, TX - you could see a man with brown hair driving the car, a girl with blonde hair in the passenger seat.

"It looks like I'm headed back to Texas," Peter muttered to himself.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Three

Claire had worked very hard to convince Zach that they were friends over the past week, and he was slowly becoming the friend she remembered. When she told him that she had asked Peter to help her run away, he had a suggestion.

"What about your birth parents?" he asked.

"What about them?" Claire retorted, confused. "I have no idea who they are. The people my dad introduced me to were phonies."

"Couldn't you try to track them down? What do you do know about your adoption?" he pressed.

Claire thought about it. "Not much, but I think I know someone who might know."

~~*~~

Zach stayed in the car while Claire went to her secret meeting spot with the Haitian.

"Do you have any idea how dangerous this is?" a familiar accented voice said as he approached.

Claire turned to face him. "You said if I had an emergency, to hang the chimes outside my window."

"Is your father becoming suspicious?"

"No. And it's kind of a problem. Every word out of my mouth is a lie. I have to laugh, and smile, and look him in the eye. My own father. It's breaking my heart," she said, her voice wet with unshed tears.

"Would you prefer I took your memory?"

She shook her head. "I need to know that one thing in my life is real. Do you know who my real parents are?"

"Of your father, I know nothing," he elusively said.

"And my mother?"

Reluctantly, he told her, "Only that she died in an explosion here in Texas fourteen years ago."

Claire was heartbroken. "My mother died? Are you sure?"

"Your father told me many years ago. He had no reason to lie. This is the last conversation we have about this. Now you need to go back home and forget about your real parents."

The Haitian left as quickly as he'd arrived, not wanting his betrayal to be discovered.

~~*~~

Zach drove them to the Burnt Toast Diner for some cheer-up junk food; and some privacy. While Claire munched on fries, he used the café's free wireless internet to browse the newspaper archives on his laptop.

His face lit up when he came across one particular article. "There was a fire in an apartment house fourteen years ago in Kermit, Texas. Kermit, why does that sound so familiar?"

"'Cause of the frog?" Claire sarcastically pointed out.

Ignoring her, Zach said, "Check it out. A 21-year-old woman was killed in the explosion. Meredith Gordon."

"Oh, my God," Claire gasped.

Zach continued to read, "Also killed in the fire was her 18-month-old daughter. Claire, I think that's you."

"But I didn't die," Claire pointed out.

"Somebody thought you did."

"What am I supposed to do with all this?" Claire asked, bewildered.

"You may still have a real family out there. Maybe you got an aunt or a rich, eccentric uncle," pointed out.

"Great, an uncle," Claire huffed. Not exactly what she was looking for.

"Who knows, one of them might even know who your real father is," Zach said, trying to remain hopeful, getting caught up in the mystery of Claire's past.

~~*~~

Later that night, Claire decided to do some research into Zach's suggestion that maybe someone would have known Meredith Gordon, her maybe bio-mom.

She went through the phone book and started to call anyone with the last name of Gordon. After three calls, no one had heard of anyone named Meredith. She dialed the fourth number with little expectation that this call would pan out.

A woman answered. "Hello?"

Claire began her rehearsed speech. "Hi, I'm looking for someone related to Meredith Gordon. She died in an explosion fourteen years ago. I've been calling everyone in Kermit with the last name of 'Gordon.' Any chance that you're related to her?"

"Who is this?" the woman suspiciously asked.

"My name's Claire Bennet, I'm calling from Odessa."

"What -- What is this about? And how do you know the name 'Meredith Gordon'?"

"I think she was my mom," Claire admitted.

"Is this some kind of joke?"

"No, ma'am."

"Well, Meredith only had one daughter, and she died in the fire," the woman said.

"That's kind of what I'm trying to say is ... I didn't die. I think I'm her and I'm looking for any information I can find about my mom," Claire acknowledged.

"Well, then you made the right call. This is her," Meredith confessed.

"Mom?" Claire asked in bewildered wonder.

"Yeah," Meredith confirmed, lighting a cigarette with her bare fingers.

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Four

"You're not really going?" Simone asked in disbelief as she watched Peter pack a suitcase.

"Yes, I am," Peter insisted, throwing a couple of shirts and a pair of jeans in the bag.

Simone followed him into the bathroom, where he was now packing up what he'd need from there. "You're going to drop everything, again, to run off to Texas for some high school teenager?"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I am?" Peter retorted, growing frustrated by Simone's protestations. "Claire needs me. Isaac's paintings showed us in Texas together, again."

"Isaac's paintings," Simone huffed. "You know, I'm starting to regret ever having introduced the two of you."

"Isaac has a gift, whether you want to believe it or not," Peter said.

"I've always known that he has talent," Simone said, wistfully. "But that doesn't mean that he's painting the future."

"I've seen his paintings, Simone. I've seen them come true."

"He painted you dead, Peter," Simone reminded him. "I'm more relieved than I can say that he got that one wrong." She stepped in Peter's path to wrap her arms around him.

"He didn't get it wrong," Peter said, shrugging out of her embrace. "I did die in Odessa. It was Claire's ability that brought me back."

"So you're running off to be with her the second she calls you? Is this how it's going to be from now on, Peter?" Simone asked, her hands on her hips. "You're going to drop everything to go be with this teenager whenever she stubs her toe?"

"She wouldn't need to call me for that," Peter joked, but Simone wasn't in a joking mood. "Look, I know this seems crazy. I know it. But I also know that this is what I need to do. It's who I am. If you can't accept that, then maybe we shouldn't be together."

"I'm starting to think that you're right about that. We shouldn't be together. You're not even here long enough to be an 'us'."

Peter finally stopped his frantic packing to stare at Simone. He gulped. "Is that what you really want? To end this?"

" _This_ has barely begun," she pointed out.

Peter closed his eyes and sighed. After lusting after Simone for so long, he was losing her already. But if she couldn't accept that he had to go help Claire, then it was probably for the best.

"I guess you're right. You should probably go. I have to finish packing. I have a flight to catch," Peter coldly said.

Simone looked stricken, but didn't protest. She picked up her purse and headed towards the door. She paused with the door open to quietly say, "Good luck, Peter."

Peter waited for the click of the door closing before he was moved. He could mourn the ending of the short relationship later. Right now, he had a cheerleader to save.

~~*~~

Claire was waiting for Peter at the Burnt Toast Diner as planned. A large duffle bag sat beside her chair in the diner filled with as much as she was able to fit. She could hardly believe she was actually doing this. She would have felt silly sitting with such a large duffle if this diner wasn't across the street from a bus depot. She just knew Peter had planned it that way.

Zach had been a great help in aiding her escape. He'd distracted her mother by asking questions about Mr. Muggles while Claire sneaked the bag out to his car. Then he drove her to the diner; her parents thought she was staying over at Zach's house to pull an all-nighter studying for a test. He'd offered to wait around with her, but she insisted that she was fine.

Peter walked through the door five minutes before 6:00pm, looking even better than she remembered. Claire sucked in a sharp breath at how handsome he was. His face lit up when he spotted her sitting by herself at a table.

He was still smiling when he approached the table. He stood there, just looking at her for a minute, before he said, "You're here."

"Of course I'm here," Claire said, still sitting in the chair. "I asked you to come, after all."

Peter shook his head nervously, grinning self-consciously. "I know. I guess part of me didn't believe that you'd show up."

"It's so good to see you again," Claire said, standing and throwing her arms around Peter's neck, pulling him into a tight hug.

Peter slowly wrapped the young woman in his arms, surprised, but relishing the contact.

When they pulled apart, Peter asked, "So, you ready to get out of here?"

"You bet." Claire grinned. She leaned down to grab her bag, but Peter beat her to it.

"Great," Peter said. "I don't know if you had any ideas about where to go, but I think we need to go to Kermit."

Claire stopped in her tracks, gaping at him. "What did you say?"

Peter stopped and backtracked to where Claire had stopped. He frowned slightly in confusion. "Kermit? It's a town about an hour west of here."

"How did you know I was going to ask you to go there?" Claire asked.

Peter's frowned deepened. "I didn't. You were going to ask to go to Kermit? How come?"

"I think my bio-mom lives there. I tracked her down last night. I was hoping we could go meet her," Claire admitted.

Peter's eyes lit up and a grin spread across his face. "I have a feeling she's definitely your mom."

"Really? How do you know?" Claire excitedly asked, continuing to follow him to his rental car.

"Let's just say that I have my sources," he said with a wink.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Five

They had only been on the road for fifteen minutes when Claire turned wide, panicked eyes to Peter. "I can't do this."

"You can't do what?" Peter asked, glancing away from the road briefly to look at her.

"Meet my bio-mom," Claire clarified. "I need more time. Please don't make me do this yet."

Peter frowned. "How much time to you need? I mean, we can probably wait until tomorrow, if you want."

Claire vigorously nodded her head. "Yes, tomorrow would be great. I just need some more time to figure out what I'm going to say."

Peter thought about it. He had figured that they would need to find a motel to stay in tonight anyway, so they could just do that sooner rather than later.

"Okay, we can find a place to stay for tonight and discuss what you'll say to Meredith tomorrow. Sound good?" Peter proposed.

"Yes, thank you!" Claire exclaimed. She leaned over as far as she could with her seat belt on and hugged Peter, or at least his arm.

"Why don't you keep your eye on signs for motels, in that case?" Peter suggested.

It turned out that there weren't any motels along the way, but when they got to Kermit they found a couple. Peter got them a room with two double beds at the Kermit Inn. He apologized to Claire for only getting the one room, but it was all they had left.

Since they hadn't eaten at the diner in Midland, Claire suggested they grab a bite to eat at the pizza place across the street

"So how did you find your mom?" Peter asked, after they placed their order.

"Well, I asked the Haitian if he knew anything, and while he didn't have any info about my bio-dad, he said my dad had told him that my mom died in a fire."

"Then how...?"

"She didn't really die," Claire said. "Obviously. Just one more lie my dad has told over the years."

Peter reached across the table to cover one of Claire's hands, in sympathy.

"My friend Zach went online and looked up fires around the time I was adopted. He found a newspaper article that mentioned a woman, Meredith Gordon, and her 18-month old baby girl who died in a fire," Claire told him.

"So she thought you were dead too," Peter guessed.

"Yep. I started calling everyone in Kermit with the last name Gordon, hoping to find a relative who could tell me about my mom, and maybe who my dad was. You can imagine my surprise when I found my mom alive."

"I bet she was just as surprised," Peter said.

"Yeah, she sounded a little shell-shocked." Claire paused when their food arrived. "I wonder how she survived the fire. Do you think she can heal, like me?"

"It's possible," Peter agreed. "I haven't heard about two people having the same ability, yet, but I guess it wouldn't be far off for a parent and child to share the same trait."

"It would certainly make it easier to ask her about it," Claire said. "It's not exactly an easy topic to bring up."

"Tell me about it," Peter laughed. "Every time I tried to tell my brother, Nathan, that I thought I could fly he'd shut me up as fast as he could."

"You can fly?" Claire asked in wide-eyed admiration.

"Not really," Peter admitted. "I did a couple of times, when I was around Nathan. _He_ can fly."

"That's so cool."

"Yeah, I think that's why I wanted it to be me so badly," Peter said.

"But if you can do what he can do, then you can fly, too," Claire reminded him.

"With some practice, yeah, I will," Peter agreed.

The easy conversation continued throughout their meal. When they finished eating they returned to the hotel. Claire flipped through the cable channels on the TV, but didn't find anything she wanted to watch, while Peter returned a call from his brother. Claire tried not to eavesdrop, but it was hard not to.

"Is everything okay?" she asked when Peter finally hung up.

"Yeah, it will be," Peter said. "He's not happy about me being here, with you."

Claire frowned. "Because of what happened before?"

"Partly. He's worried that I have some kind of Hero complex, especially when it comes to you." Peter sighed. "Simone also told him that I was helping you to run away. Nathan's running for Congress, so he's worried about how this will look to the press if they find out."

"Who's Simone?" Claire quietly asked.

"My girlfriend," Peter automatically replied. "No, make that my ex-girlfriend."

He missed Claire's small frown, then smile, as he spoke.

"You have a girlfriend?"

"Not anymore." Peter kicked off his shoes and stretched out on the bed he'd chosen, looking up at the dirty ceiling. "She didn't understand why I had to come when you called. She said that if I came here that we were over. And here I am."

Claire slid out of her shoes and moved to sit next to Peter on his bed. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

Peter sat up. "Hey, it's not your fault." He brushed Claire's hair away from her face, his fingers unconsciously caressing her cheek. "Me and Simone, we were pretty new anyway. We just got together a few days before the first time I came here. I hate to admit it, but I was her rebound guy."

"I'm sure that's not true," Claire said, capturing Peter's hand as he started to withdraw it.

"No, it is. She slept with me the same day she broke up with Isaac." Peter's cheeks flushed as he realized he'd just told this teenager he'd had sex with Simone on their first date, and it wasn't even really a date.

Claire was blushing herself as she mumbled, "Oh."

Rather than focus on Peter's sex life, she latched on to the other name he'd mentioned. "Isaac, why does that name sound familiar?"

"I think I may have mentioned him when you came to see me in, um, jail. He's an artist who can paint the future," Peter said, grateful for the change in topic.

"He's the one that showed you where to find me," Claire remembered. "Did he convince you to come now?"

"Yeah. He did a painting of us driving into Kermit," Peter admitted.

"Cool. So he's your ex's ex?" Claire asked, her forehead scrunched in confusion.

"Heh, yeah. It's kind of complicated."

"Sounds like it," Claire agreed.

"So, uh, do you have a boyfriend?" Peter asked, hating how nervous he felt just asking the question. Just because he thought she was cute didn't mean that anything could happen between them. She was still in high school, for one thing.

"Nope, no boyfriend," Claire said. "I'm kind of a social pariah since I crashed the quarterback's car, with us in it."

"What? Why would you do that?" Peter asked in alarm.

Claire shrugged. "He tried to rape me. He didn't. He killed me before he got that far."

"Oh, Claire," Peter said, sympathetically. Before he could stop himself, he reached out and pulled her into a hug.

She returned his embrace, taking comfort in his solid form, knowing he knew what it was like to die. "A branch punctured the base of my skull. I woke up on the autopsy table after they removed it. I had to hold my skin together from where they'd cut me open." She was surprised to find that she was crying.

"Hey, hey, don't cry," Peter soothed her. He pulled back enough to brush the tears from her cheeks. "It's over and you're safe."

"I know," Claire said, squeezing his shoulders. "I feel safe with you. More than anyone else. I trust you."

Peter smiled. "I trust you, too."

"I know that we barely know each other, but I feel like I could tell you anything," Claire admitted, blushing faintly.

"I know what you mean," Peter said. "It feels like I've known you forever."

He leaned forward to brush a kiss against Claire's cheek, just as she turned her head to say something, causing the corners of their mouths to brush instead. Peter froze, afraid of having crossed a line of impropriety. But he didn't pull away.

Meeting his beautiful brown eyes, Claire tilted her head a bit more and gently pressed her lips to his. At first Peter just sat there, too surprised to move. Her lips were soft and moist against his, and a moment later he was kissing her back.

Peter drew one hand up to wrap in her luscious hair, the other sliding around her waist, pulling her closer. One of Claire's hands was teasing the hair at the back of his neck as the other held his face.

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Six

Peter didn't know how long they had been kissing - it could have been minutes or hours - when the chirping of Claire's cell phone broke into their cocoon of bliss. They pulled back at the same time, startled by the noise, as well as what they had been doing.

Reluctantly, Claire answered her phone, licking her lips as she did so. "Hello?" she asked, slightly breathless. "Hey, Zach."

Peter reclined against the headboard while Claire got up to talk to the person who had interrupted them. He wasn't sure if he should be angry or grateful for the interruption. He hadn't planned on kissing her. She had to be at least ten years younger than him. It was wrong on so many levels. Only it hadn't felt like that when he'd had her in his arms, her soft lips pressed against his. Instead, she had felt like home. A first kiss had never been so perfect, not even with Simone.

"Not yet," Claire said into the phone. "Tomorrow. No, we're at a hotel. No! Get your mind out of the gutter. As if." She laughed at something Zach said, then rolled her eyes. "You can't be serious. Okay, fine."

Claire turned to Peter, holding out the phone. "Zach wants to talk to you."

"Who's Zach?" Peter asked.

"My friend. The one who had his memory erased," she said.

Peter gulped as he took the pink phone and held it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Can I trust her with you?" Zach said by way of greeting.

Peter's eyes flew to Claire's, wondering if she had known what Zach was going to ask him. Knowing he already couldn't be trusted.

"I would never do anything to hurt Claire," Peter sincerely answered.

"She trusts you," Zach said. "She says that you have some kind of bond. If you do anything to hurt her I will find a way to track you down and make you pay. Understand?"

"Yeah, I understand. It won't be necessary, though," Peter said, feeling ridiculous for being afraid of this teenaged boy he'd never met.

"Good. Now give me back to Claire," Zach insisted.

Peter didn't bother saying goodbye. "He wants to talk to you again."

Claire looked apologetic as she took the phone back. "Are you done protecting me yet? Good. Yeah, I'll call and let you know what happens. Bye, Zach."

Claire hung up the phone and set it aside. She hesitated before resuming her place on Peter's bed. "Sorry about that."

"I thought you didn't have a boyfriend," Peter said, feeling even guiltier.

"Zach isn't my boyfriend. He's just a friend. My best friend," Claire insisted.

"He's very protective of you," Peter observed.

"Sounds like most of the guys in my life," she agreed, looking at him through her eyelashes.

"Look, about that kiss..." Peter started to say, but Claire cut him off.

"Please don't say it was a mistake."

"Claire, you know nothing can happen between us," Peter said.

"Why not?" Claire pouted.

Peter wanted to take that protruding lip between his and nibble on it for hours. He shook himself out of that fantasy.

"For starters, I'm like ten years older than you. Plus, you're a minor..."

"No, I'm not," Claire interrupted. "In Texas, the age of consent is seventeen, which I am."

"Not with someone ten years older than you, I bet," Peter countered. He couldn't allow himself to believe her blindly. He could get in enough trouble for taking her from her home, no need to add a statutory rape charge to that.

"But does that mean we can't kiss?" Claire asked. "It was a really good kiss."

"Yeah, it was," Peter agreed, losing his focus for a minute as Claire licked her lips. He started to lean towards those inviting lips again, but abruptly pulled back. "We shouldn't tempt fate, though."

"I'm gonna get ready for bed," Claire suddenly announced, getting up. Peter watched her dig around in her bag for her night things before she disappeared into the bathroom.

He groaned, flopping back on the bed. He was in for a long night; he just knew it.

Several minutes later, Claire emerged from the bathroom in a tank top and a thin pair of shorts. Peter could see her bra among the items she'd removed and he bit back a groan, trying not to look at her loose breasts beneath her top.

"I'm just going to go..." Peter said, getting up. He grabbed his toiletry bag from his suitcase and edged towards the bathroom.

When Peter emerged from the bathroom in a t-shirt and his boxer shorts, it was to find Claire in 'his' bed.

"Oh, I though you wanted the other one," he commented.

"I changed my mind," Claire said, then lifted the covers in silent invitation for him to join her.

"Um, Claire, we already talked about his," Peter nervously said. He should not be so nervous because of a teenager. Actually, he should be, because she was a teenager.

Claire rolled her eyes. "Nothing has to happen. I just wanted to sleep next to you. That's not illegal, is it?"

"No, no it isn't. I just don't think it's a good idea," Peter said.

"I promise that I won't jump you," Claire told him.

"This is a very bad idea," Peter said to himself as he slid under the covers. Once he was settled, Claire snuggled up against his side.

"See, this isn't so bad," she contently said.

Peter slid his arm around her waist and had to agree, "No, not bad at all."

 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Seven

Peter came to consciousness slowly the next morning. He burrowed his face in the hair in front of him, pulling the warm body he was spooned behind closer. His hand slid under her top, gliding along soft skin to cup a full breast. Unconsciously, he rubbed his morning erection against her.

"Mmm, Peter," his bedmate cooed.

That wasn't Simone's voice. Peter's eyes shot open and all he could see was blonde hair filling his vision. Blonde...Claire! He was molesting Claire in her sleep.

Peter fell out of bed in his haste to get away from her. The sound of his fall woke Claire.

She slowly rolled over to peer at Peter sitting on the floor. Lying on her stomach, she snuggled into the pillow, smiling lazily at him.

"What are you doing down there?" she asked.

Peter was relieved that she didn't seem to remember his hands all over her just a few minutes ago, let along anything else touching her.

"I, uh, misjudged how close I was to the edge of the bed," Peter said, sounding embarrassed. Well, he was embarrassed, just not for the reason he was telling Claire.

Claire shifted over, leaving room for Peter as she lifted the sheet. "Are you coming back to bed?"

Peter glanced at the clock. It was a little after 7am. Normally, he'd crawl back into bed for another hour or so, but his body still remembered holding and touching Claire in ways that he shouldn't know about.

"Actually, I'm kind of awake now. I think I'll just go and shower," Peter said, slowly standing, keeping his hands in front of his groin, hoping she was too sleepy to notice his arousal.

"Okay, I'll stay here 'till you're done, then do the same," Claire said, her eyes drifting closed again.

Peter hastily grabbed a change of clothes and practically ran for the sanctuary of the bathroom. He debated taking a cold shower to rid himself of his little problem, but knew that wouldn't be enough with such a tempting siren on the other side of the door.

Turning the water on to warm, Peter removed his clothes and stepped into the shower. His eyes closed as he took himself in hand, stroking quickly to memories of holding Claire just a little while ago. He surprised himself by just how quickly thoughts of her brought him off.

Once he was able to get his breathing back under control, Peter quickly washed his hair, along with the rest of his body, hoping to wash away his guilt. He couldn't believe he'd just jerked off to thoughts of a seventeen year old high school kid. A very sexy, sweet, alluring high school cheerleader.

When he emerged from the steamy bathroom fully dressed, it was to find Claire sitting up in bed, watching some cartoon on TV.

"Good morning," she chirped, glancing over at Peter.

"Morning," Peter replied. He sat on the opposite bed. "Did you sleep well?"

Claire was blushing faintly as she replied, "Yeah, really well. Better than I have in a long time." She looked at him through her eyelashes, the implication that it was because she slept in his arms very clear.

It made Peter wonder if maybe she hadn't been asleep when he'd been touching her.

"How's the water pressure?" Claire asked, breaking into Peter's thoughts.

"What? Oh, it's good," Peter said.

"Great. There's nothing worse than staying in a hotel with a crappy shower," Claire informed him.

She got up and picked up the small pile of clothes that Peter just notice had been set out at the foot of the bed. Claire started for the bathroom, then spun around as if she'd just remembered something. She quickly crossed to Peter and before he could react, kissed him on the lips before skipping off to the bathroom and shutting the door.

Peter lay back on the bed, his hand over his eyes. He was going to hell - or maybe he was already there.

~~*~~

After gathering up their belongings and checking out, Peter and Claire went in search of breakfast.

"How are you feeling this morning?" Peter asked, enjoying the hot cup of coffee.

Blushing faintly, thinking about their kiss the previous night, Claire answered, "Really good."

"Really?" Peter asked, surprised. "No more nerves about meeting Meredith?"

"Oh," Claire said, realizing what he'd meant. "Oh, um, actually, I'm still kind of nervous about that."

"Then what..." Peter started to question before realizing what she must have been thinking of at first. "I mean, that's understandable."

Claire took a big bite of her omelet and couldn't meet Peter's eyes. It was silly really, being this nervous after one kiss. Okay, so it was a really incredible kiss. The best she'd ever had the pleasure of experiencing, actually.

"Yeah, but I think that I'm ready to see her. Today," Claire admitted.

"Good, that's good," Peter rushed to say. "The trailer park you said she lives in isn't too far from here. We can head over when we're done here."

Claire gulped. "Great."

They finished the meal in relative silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

When they returned to the car, instead of pulling on her seat belt right away, like Peter moved to do, Claire pulled Peter to meet her lips. Peter only resisted for a moment before giving in to her demanding kiss. Why deny himself the pleasure of her kiss when she was so eager to have him kiss her?

"I thought we weren't going to do that again," Peter panted out when they finally parted.

Claire smirked, running her hands through his hair. "For luck."

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Eight

It didn't take long to find Meredith's home in the trailer park. Claire took Peter's hand in hers as they approached the door, hoping he didn't mind how sweaty her palm was. As much as she loved Sandra Bennet, Claire was about to meet the woman who had given birth to her.

Peter gave her a reassuring squeeze of the hand. Claire looked at him, thanks in her eyes, and she knocked on the door with her free hand.

A blonde woman in her late 30s opened the door. She looks at Claire for a long moment, then asked, "Claire?"

Claire nodded and Meredith stepped out and pulled her into a hug.

"Mom," Claire whispered, hugging Meredith back tightly.

Peter stepped back, keeping a respectful distance as mother and daughter were reunited.

Meredith finally stepped back and noticed Peter for the first time. She wiped tears from her eyes to get a better look at this young man who looked vaguely familiar.

"I'm sorry, where are my manners? Please, come in," she said to both of them.

With a hand at Claire's back, Peter followed her and Meredith into the trailer. Peter and Claire sat on the small couch, while Meredith sat on a chair near Claire after handing out glasses of water.

"Claire, you didn't tell me you had a boyfriend," Meredith said, to break the ice.

"Oh, Peter's not my boyfriend," Claire quickly said, wishing that he was. "He's just a friend. A very good friend."

"Peter, if you don't mind me saying so, you look very familiar. What did you say your last name was?" Meredith asked.

"I'm sorry, I didn't properly introduce myself. It's Petrelli, Peter Petrelli," he said.

Meredith dropped the water glass she was about to take a drink from. "D-did you say Petrelli?" she asked nervously.

Claire frowned at Meredith's reaction. She exchanged a look with Peter, who said, "Yes, Petrelli. Does that mean something to you?"

Meredith swallowed nervously and stood to find a cigarette. She fumbled with a lighter she kept around for when guests were over, turning her back to light it with her fingers instead. She inhaled deeply, letting the tobacco help soothe her nerves.

"I knew a Petrelli once," she admitted, turning back to the pair on the couch. "He was on leave from the Navy, a little over sixteen years ago."

"Nathan," Peter quietly said, the pieces slowly falling in to place. "My older brother, Nathan, he would have been in the Navy around that time." He turned to Claire. "My brother is your father."

"What? But you... and I'm... How is this possible?" Claire babbled, feeling lost with all of this new information. Peter, her Peter, the man she was rapidly falling for, was her uncle? No, it wasn't possible.

"That's right, his name was Nathan," Meredith confirmed. "He swept me off my feet, he did. He just had this confidence about him. Like nothing could get in his way and the world should bow before him. Don't know what he saw in me, but we took a fancy to each other right away. After he found out that I was knock-- was pregnant, he asked me to marry him. He had to go back on duty though before it could happen and then the fire happened, and, well, you know the rest."

"Did you know about this?" Clare asked, her voice hard as she turned on Peter. "When you saved me, did you know we were related?"

"No! God no," Peter said, taking her hands in his. "I never knew anything about this. I was only ten at the time. I hardly ever saw Nathan when I was a kid because he was off at college and then in the Navy. I kinda remember him coming home for a little while around then, and he was really sad, but they never told me why."

Peter felt his stomach twist with guilt and sadness. Sadness that his brother had to go through believing that he'd lost a fiancée and a daughter. And guilt for being sexually attracted to his niece. He thanked God that they hadn't made love the previous night, as much as he had wanted to. The kissing was bad enough, but at least that's all that it had been.

Sitting again, Meredith asked, "If you two didn't know about each other, then how did you meet?"

"Well..."

Claire interrupted Peter before he could tell Meredith about Homecoming. "Wait." She stood and moved to Meredith's kitchen. "Before we tell you that story, there's something you need to see." She grabbed a large knife and before Meredith could finish protesting, she slashed her arm.

"Just wait," she told Meredith, who had moved to stop her. Before she had finished speaking, the wound began to heal. "Please say something."

Meredith took it all in, realizing that Claire was special, like her. Smiling, she held out a fist and when she opened her hand, a ball of fire appeared. She closed her hand to snuff out the flame. "Some family."

Peter had come over during the exchange, to make sure that Meredith didn't react aversely to Claire's healing. Out of curiosity, he opened a fist and a small flame did appear for a moment before going out.

"How did you do that?" Meredith asked in awe. "I've never met anyone else who could produce fire."

"I'm some kind of mimic," Peter admitted. "When I'm around people with abilities, I can do what they do."

"And Nathan, does that mean he can do something too?" Meredith asked, guessing that he could.

"He can fly," Peter told her.

"That doesn't surprise me," Meredith said with a small smile. "He certainly knew how to sweep me off my feet."

"Is that how you survived?" Claire asked, bringing them back to Meredith's ability.

"Yeah," Meredith confirmed. "I didn't start that fire, mind you, but it didn't hurt me. I'm guessing since you can heal, that's how you survived?"

"I guess," Claire said. "I only found out about being able to heal about six months ago, but I suppose that it was there all along."

"Me too," Peter said. "I only started notice things about me and Nathan having abilities about six months ago."

"Is that when y'all met?" Meredith asked.

"No, that was just a few weeks ago," Claire said. "Peter saved me at Homecoming. I was supposed to be the Queen."

"That's wonderful," Meredith said. "Wait; supposed to?"

"There was this man, Sylar," Claire started, then got choked up.

Peter took over the story. "Sylar's been hunting people with abilities. He kills them and somehow takes their abilities. He was after Claire that night."

"But he killed Jackie instead," Claire picked up the narrative again. "She had told the cops that she had saved a man from a fire, when it had really been me. Sylar saw the article about her and thought she was me. He killed her, but before he did she told me to run."

"How did you know to be there?" Meredith asked Peter.

"There's this artist I know in New York, Isaac. He can paint the future. He painted me saving Claire at Homecoming. Oh, and there was this Japanese guy who came to me from the future and told me to Save the Cheerleader to Save the World."

"It's like some kind of comic book come to life," Meredith mused.

'Or a Shakespearean tragedy,' Peter thought, looking at Claire.

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Claire discover they're related, but in a different way.

Chapter Nine

"Not that I'm not happy to have you here, but don't you need to be getting back home?" Meredith asked after they had all finished dinner.

Claire guiltily looked over at Peter. "Actually, I kind of ran away from home," Claire nervously admitted.

"What?" Meredith asked in disbelief. "Claire, what happened?"

"It's a long story," Claire said, not wanting to get into it. "The short version is that my dad isn't who I thought he was and I can't stand living with all of his lies anymore."

"And Peter, you're helping her?" Meredith guessed.

"Um, yes," Peter confessed. "Claire called and begged me to come help her and I just couldn't say no."

"Where are you going? Back to New York?" Meredith asked. She debated inviting Claire to stay with her, but she was in no more of a position to be a good mom now than she had been sixteen years ago.

"We hadn't really discussed that yet," Peter admitted. "Isaac had painted us coming here, so that's what we did. Also, Claire told me about you when I got here and she wanted to see you right away."

"I'm so glad that you did. I-is Nathan in New York too?" Meredith asked.

"Yeah, he's running for Congress," Peter said.

"Congress, really?" Meredith's eyes flickered with greed for a moment. "Learning that we're both alive probably wouldn't be a good thing for him right about now, then."

"No, you're probably right," Peter agreed. "Politically, at least. But if the press doesn't find out who Claire is, there's no reason she can't meet him. I bet Nathan would be very happy to learn that the daughter he thought had died is still alive, let alone can't be killed."

"Do you really think he'll want to meet me?" Claire asked in a small voice.

Peter turned his full attention to Claire. Forgetting for a moment that he was her uncle, he ran his fingers through her hair soothingly. "Of course he will. Nathan will probably come off as kind of cold at first, but that's just a mask that he wears for the public. He's a good man, and I know he'll be ecstatic that you're alive."

"Can we... Can we go to New York?" Claire asked, meeting Peter's eyes. "Will you take me to meet my bio-dad?"

"It'll be an honor to introduce you to Nathan," Peter told her, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

"What about you?" Claire asked Meredith.

"What about me?"

"I mean, I just found you and here I am making plans to go off to New York. Will I ever see you again?" Claire asked.

"Hey there, of course we'll still see each other. You've got my phone number; we can talk whenever you want. It's probably just as well that you're going off to New York. I was getting ready to head back to Mexico soon anyway. I've spent a lot of time there over the years and have been feeling drawn back there lately."

"Oh, you're leaving too," Claire said, sounding disappointed. "I guess it's all for the best. Good thing we found you before you left."

"The timing certainly did work out well," Meredith agreed.

Peter silently agreed with the timing. Although, he wished that he'd known Claire was his niece before he'd kissed her. But at least they hadn't done anything more before learning the truth.

Standing, Peter said, "It's getting late; we should go."

"Do we have to?" Claire asked him.

"I don't want us to overstay our welcome. We've all learned an awful lot today and need time to process it all," he said.

"Do y'all have a place to stay for tonight?" Meredith asked, hoping they'd say yes.

Before Claire could admit that they didn't, Peter said, "Yeah, we have a room at the Kermit Inn." He shot Claire a look to silence any contradictions.

"When are you leaving for New York?" Meredith asked.

"I'll call the airlines tomorrow to see if we can get on a flight," Peter said.

"I guess the price of a last minute ticket wouldn't really be an issue for a Petrelli, would it?" Meredith asked.

Peter tried not to be offended by her tone. "No, it's not."

Trying to diffuse the sudden tension, Claire crossed to Meredith to give her a hug. "I'm so glad to have finally met you."

Meredith couldn't help but to return the hug. "You're everything that I'd hoped you'd be. Even more so. You've made me proud, Claire."

Claire had tears in her eyes when she pulled away. "Thank you. I'll be in touch, I promise."

"I look forward to it," Meredith said, ushering Claire and Peter out.

Back in the car, Claire asked, "We're going back to the same motel?"

Peter shrugged. "May as well. It's too late to get a flight out tonight."

"So, um," Claire nervously started, "you're my uncle?"

Peter sighed. "It looks like it." He turned slightly to look at Claire. "I swear to you that I didn't know."

"I believe you. I doubt you would have kissed me if you had," Claire said. "What do we do now?"

"About what?" Peter asked. "Now we know that we're related so we won't do it again."

"I still... I'm still attracted to you," Claire admitted. "I can't help it, but I still want to kiss you."

"We can't," Peter harshly said, tamping down the thrill he felt hearing her say that. "I may still want you too, Claire, but we can't. We have to just forget that it ever happened."

"What if we didn't go to New York?" Claire proposed. "Only you, me and Meredith know right now. If we didn't tell Nathan..."

"No," Peter cut her off. "I can't do that. He's my brother and he deserves to know you're alive. Besides, we'd know. It would still be wrong."

"So that's it? I had the two best kisses of my life with you and you're saying it can never happen again?" Claire pouted.

It tore up Peter's guts to hear her say these things. He wished he could make it untrue. That he could be with her, but it just wasn't in the cards. He was losing a potential lover in order to gain a niece.

"I'm so sorry, Claire, but that's just the way that it has to be," Peter said. "Just think though, you're getting a father out of the deal."

"But I'm losing you," Claire whined.

"No, you're not. I'll be in your life even more now," Peter pointed out.

"But not like how I wanted you to be," Claire said.

"Not like how I wanted either," Peter admitted. "But it's gotta be better than nothing."

"It'll have to be," Claire reluctantly agreed.

"Come on," Peter said, pulling into the motel parking lot. "Let's get settled and I'll tell you all about Nathan."

The End

**Author's Note:**

> Originally completed August 10, 2007.


End file.
